Hello! I was wondering what your thoughts and recommendations are for drone insurance for Part 107 commercial pilots.
I found SkyWatch and AirModo, both of which have iOS apps and allow you to get insurance for an hour, or pay for a month or a year up front. SkyWatch was recommended by Greg’s Pilot Institute, and he seems like a trustworthy dude.
Both apps look great, and there are more app store reviews for SkyWatch than AirModo. The latter only has 11 ratings (no text reviews to speak of), which is super low for an app that has been around for 10 months. Also, the AirModo website doesn’t have much there to speak of, which makes me a bit skeptical. But it’s considerably cheaper.
With SkyWatch you can pay hourly, monthly, or annually. With AirModo, you’re limited to hourly or yearly.
While my search is only beginning at this point, I’m curious if anyone uses SkyWatch (or something similar) or if it’s just better to go with a traditional insurance company (if so, any recommendations?).
I love the app idea because I don’t plan on flying a TON, so I can just grab coverage for an hour here or there, or if I know I’m going to have a busy month, I can pay for the full month and save a bit.
Between the two apps I mentioned, AirModo seems cheaper but doesn’t inspire as much confidence.
BWI Aviation is the best and cheapest insurance I’ve found. The others have exceptions that BWI doesn’t. BWI coverage is also global, while the others charge for that. BWI has been around in aviation for a long time and is a reliable name.
SkyWatch doesn’t compare to BWI. Even without hull insurance, SkyWatch was already more expensive with low caps on privacy coverage.
I used SkyWatch for a couple of months, and it was okay, but it seemed a bit pricey for how little I was flying. Switched over to a traditional insurer after a bit because I wanted more stable, long-term coverage without the hourly fees adding up.
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AFAIK, SkyWatch’s hourly rates don’t cover damage to the drone itself, just liability for damage to people or property. So if your drone crashes into a parked car or gets attacked by a bird, it’ll cover the car repair but not your drone.
The yearly/monthly plans, however, allow you to add hull insurance to cover theft or damage to the drone itself. When I checked, covering 90% of my Air 2S’s value was around $100 annually.
@Rey
That makes sense for liability on an hourly basis. I also got DJI Care Refresh, so my main concern is liability coverage to let clients (or bystanders) know I’m insured.
SkyWatch seems well-rounded with a solid app and website, but AirModo’s price is tempting. If anyone can vouch for them or has other cost-effective options, I’d love to hear about it. Thanks!